Sol of Luna: A New Age
by Gakusangi
Summary: Matt, Mello and Linda adjust to the life of royalty as they guard Near as the Emperor's newly adopted children. Strife within the Imperial Council threatens to hurl the Empire into turoil. L and Naomi face an old and dangerous enemy and a new oppenent.
1. Prologue: Coyote Midnight

**Sol of Luna: A New Age**

**Author:** Gakusangi

**Author's Notes and Acknowledgements:** PLEASE READ!

Okay, so here's the deal. For anyone that keeps track and might still be here, YES "The Four Winds" has been the deleted. I apologize for the lack of updates and my recent creative slump for…well…about a year now? Anyway, here's the deal…I've deleted "The Four Winds" and am now recycling what I can from the story to supplement the OFFICIAL sequel to "Sol of Luna: Near and Far". You see, writing the side story was becoming an immense chore and I felt that it was only serving to keep you guys, the readers, from actually getting ahead in the tale and seeing what you've all been waiting for and in that regard, I find that I've been rather selfish. I won't present any excuses for this blatant neglect on my part as an author. So without ANY further ado, I present the true sequel to "Sol of Luna: Near and Far". I hope you all enjoy the ride…

This is a Death Note fan fiction. Many of the characters presented here are not mine, but the legal property of the original manga writer Tsugumi Ohba, and artist Takeshi Obata. Additional characters from are the legal properties of authors Nisio Isin and M. Prologue: Coyote Midnight

The children all cheered as the bulky panda suit lit another line of firecrackers, tossing them out and letting off a raped serious and deafening 'pops' before the scorched line floated down to the ground. The flashes of the little fireworks left the little ones all blinking and seeing bright and dark spots for a moment and still they screamed with innocent delight at the spectacle. The man in the large panda costume lumbered clumsily over to the cart and removed some tower-candles, placing them on the ground carefully before lighting them and sending up bright rockets of colors into the air which burst into brilliant, flowery displays before floating down to the ground in small embers.

The harvest festival was a three-day event that was often the joy of not only the children but all the citizens of the empire, common and noble alike. The opening of autumn would be the start of the first reaping, and the festival had streamed lengths of colored lanterns over the streets with carved pumpkins lining them, all with ghastly, frightening features for the little ones to enjoy. Before the festival, the men had work tirelessly until the crops were ready to be harvested, tilling the soil, and fattening the livestock. The woman had toiled feverishly in the kitchens, and cleaning rooms, making sure everything was ready for the great feast, and the celebrations afterwards. There had been prepared extravagant foods, like fine roasts, and pies, and other such things and there had been hand-sewn and stitched little costumes for the children so that they could go around the city well after their usual bedtimes to receive little trinkets, and treats from the locals, or cause a healthy bit of mischief. The little kiddies would dress up in costume and venture out of their homes seeking out generous adults. Woe to the person cold enough to deny them their festival treats for they would often find themselves at the receiving end of an embarrassing prank or two before the event had concluded on the third night.

The panda man came back with more firecrackers, tossing them into the street and filling the air with that rattling, like rapid gunfire, which was soon followed by the joyous squeals of the children watching. Another panda soon joined him and allowed him some relief of the gathered little ones, taking over his spot at the cart and lighting more fireworks. The first one made a show for the children, crawling away on all fours like a real panda and making them all giggle in amusement.

The storehouse just across from the display had no food things stocked inside it for some time now…not since the mysterious and as yet undiscovered vanishing of the elder couple that owned it. Nothing had stirred in it for days until this night, when the door slid open silently and a figure, wrapped in a long, black cloak came out, his hood up but not hiding the skull mask he wore over his face. He crept out as stealthily as death itself and moved down the road, away from the festivities without anyone to mark his passing… 

(XXX)

Arayoshi Hatori had taken himself away from the noise and merriment, walking away from the plaza where most of the commotion was. It was past sunset but not yet into late evening. The air was a bit crisp and you could smell moisture in the air, but the rains were far off, so the young, blonde man took the streets without any cover, but not without a sense of, seemingly unwarranted, caution. With the gatherings all in the city center, there were little people about as he made his way towards the outskirts without his personal guard or a coach to drive him to his destination. Those sorts of things attracted unwanted attention and he was moving in secret.

His footfalls were met with the steady 'tap-tap-tap' of his polished shoes on the cobblestones. He pulled his long coat about him tightly to block out a chilling wind that suddenly coiled through the streets, making him shiver. His route took him downward, descending the levels of the city like giant steps and making for the wide base, surrounded by the immense wall that enclosed the capitol. The heart of the empire…fortifications laid down brick by brick by the Divine Emperor himself countless years ago. No one could get in, not when the block was lowered and the place held up. Stores of food would last them long through any siege. Impenetrable…invincible…but it was like a rabbit-proof fence around a vegetable garden. There was always that chance that you had fenced the real threat inside.

Hatori was walking briskly, but not swiftly enough to raise any attention to himself. He was more than grateful for the festival leaving all the streets so vacant at this hour. It was only the first night and already it was providing all the protection he could ask for. He moved down the streets and past darkened alleyways, his eyes darting for signs of trouble. Even though the Emperor's son had been returned safely, there was something to be said about such an open attack from the Daimyo forces that left them all feeling a bit uneasy and on-edge. Hatori's breath was making steam now and his coat was pulled about him tightly to block out the cold.

_How can the commoners parade up the streets in weather like this every year?_ Hatori wondered to himself as his shoes tapped along.

_Tap-tap-tap_…

These taps were not his own and caused the young man to stop dead in his tracks, his body tensing and his hair standing on end as he listened. He was met with only an empty silence, the sounds of the festivities faint several feet up onto the next level of the city. He waited a long moment just to be sure before he resumed. His pace was a bit faster now and his steps lighter as he kept his ears open.

…_Tap-tap-tap_…

They returned and Hatori stopped, turning around. The street behind him was empty, still…almost unnaturally, it seemed. His breath was coming fast and his heart was hammering, thudding loudly in his ears and deafening him a bit as cold eyes stared, wide and fearful, as though trying to see through the vacancy of the street. But there was nothing. Breathing a small sigh of relief, Hatori turned to move on. He cried out sharply when he came face to face with a grinning skull and stepped back in surprise. The figure wasn't particularly large and wrapped in a dark cloak with the hood up and a skull mask covering their face. Hatori blinked a few times before he frowned and took a step off into a nearby alley, the figure following him in to towards the back where it dead-ended.

"Why don't you just shout out from the wall that something's up?" Hatori hissed angrily, looking the figure other.

The person before him only stared silently, their breath muffled behind the skull mask and their posture slightly hunched. Hatori was quiet for a moment, expecting something, anything in response, but only being met with that eerie quiet, punctuated by the person's breathing. He took another breath to calm and steel himself before he addressed the figure again.

"Well?" He demanded. "Do you have it?"

The figure in the mask stared at him more without a reply. After a moment Hatori became increasingly convinced that the person wasn't going to say anything to him. Just as he was about to ask again though, the masked figure's hand slowly reached into the folds of the black cloak and pulled out a small case, holding it out to Hatori. Hatori blinked a little before he smiled and took the case, popping it open. I pulled out a few pieces of parchment and unrolled them, looking them over and smirking with cold delight.

"Yes." He hummed lowly. "With these documents, I want to dare him to deny my relation."

He chuckled and looked back at the figure, which looked back at him soundlessly.

"…Oh, right." Hatori shook his head to clear it. "Here."

He reached into his coat and pulled out a bag, which was heavy and jingled with coins wrapped inside.

"Don't spend it all in one place." He snickered as he held the bag out to the figure.

The mask stared back at him, tilted slightly, as though confused. Hatori's smile wavered and he his brow slowly furrowed into a frown.

"…Go on, take it." He urged. "It's all there. You can count it yourself."

More silence and more staring, Hatori was becoming rapidly more and more unnerved by this person and started to question his decision to hire someone to retrieve the documents from the imperial archives. The figure reached out slowly, gloved fingers curling around the bag one at a time before it was suddenly snatched from Hatori's hand, making him jump a little. The figure tucked the bag away without checking its contents and resumed their staring. Hatori stared back for a moment before he nodded.

"Alright then…good work." He offered, carefully moving around the figure and making for the mouth of the alleyway.

As he moved, the skull mask turned slowly with him, never breaking away. Hatori started walking back towards the street before stopping at the mouth of the alley and turning back to find the cloaked figure still standing where he had been and staring at him wordlessly. He shuddered and pulled his coat about him more before taking himself out of the alley briskly, suddenly anxious to be away.

He took the more frequented streets, which were still vacant, but with all the buildings about and the lights on, it gave Hatori a sense of safety, like he was in public and less likely to be ambushed. Still, he kept a sharp eye and his ears wide open for signs of potential danger. His shoes were tapping quickly now as he seemed to continue to build up speed.

_Tap-tap-tap_…

Once again, he was certain that they weren't his own footfalls. Rather than look back, Hatori broke into a run, charging down the middle of the empty street as though his life depended on it. The buildings and windows flew by, the wind howling in his ears. He ignored the cold, the rapid beat of his heart and the panting of his breath. All he could make out was the 'tapping' behind him, matching pace. He ran for several blocks, his lungs and throat burning, his heart aching as it hammered in his chest and his thoughts blurry.

Finally he came around a corner and cried out again as the face of a daemon shot out at him and growled, its horns jutting from its forehead and large, tusk-like fangs protruding from its bottom lip. As Hatori fell to the ground and blinked up, the daemon growled ferociously again…but there was a muffled quality to the sound and a deadness to the monster's eyes that made Hatori blinked for a moment. He gritted his teeth as the creature moved away and he saw that from the neck down, the daemon was a man in red clothing…wearing a red Oni mask for the parade marching up the street towards the plaza.

In his frantic fleeing, Hatori had not detected the sounds of cheering crowds, drums, maracas, flutes and sticks being banged together in a symphony of festival noises. The people were all in costume, not late enough for the children to have been sent off to bed and leaving only the grown-ups to celebrate. Hatori sighed and got to his feet, looking around for traces of a skull mask, but finding nothing. Still, he wasn't prepared to risk anything at the moment and the parade presented suitable cover for the time being and it was heading his way anyway. He moved in from the back, the man in the Oni mask taking his act to the front of the procession and lighting two, sparkling torches, one in each hand as he led them up towards the palace.

"Pardon me." Hatori said politely as he moved through the crowd. "Excuse me…coming through…I need to get by…no, no thank you."

He waved off a vender selling beaded necklaces and took another glance around. Things were in a blur of motion and colors as the parade patrons danced and cheered happily and more than a gentle few a bit drunkenly. Amid the wave of sights and sounds, Hatori thought that made he saw something, like a flittering of shadow the coiled through the crowed almost unnaturally. But as he looked, he was met with only more common folk joining in the merriment of the festival's opening night. Hatori blinked and then started to push through the crowd a bit more.

He sought out the quickest route, finding the clear or clearer paths to shoulder through and politely excusing himself as he went, more out of habit really. It was as he glanced down his next clear line that he spotted something from over the shoulders of the people ahead of him. It was a white, grinning skull mask, staring back at him from across the way. Hatori's blood suddenly cooled in his veins as he froze with suddenly horror. He stared at the masked figure for a moment before a few other costumed individuals passed in front of him, momentarily blocking his view. As they cleared he stared at the vacant spot where the skull person had been only a second ago. Now Hatori's blood turned to ice and his heartbeat became frantic as his eyes darted about fearfully.

_Could he have switched over_? The terrifying thought crossed the young Councilor's mind. _Offered more money to get at me_? _Is it possible_?

There was a hissing sound- no, more like the sounds of a librarian shushing a noise child.

_Shh!_

I sounded and Hatori caught movement out of the corner of his eye, but when he looked there was nothing there.

_Shh!_

He snapped his head forward again. Was that a glimpse of white? Could it have been the skull mask among the crowd?

_Shh! Shh! Shh!_

It was all around him. He saw shifting shadows and moments of movement, but never the actually source. The drums were beating loudly, the flutes baring the sticks slamming together in rhythm. It was utter chaos in the middle of this street and he was fleeing for his life. There was a growl and he jumped to see the Oni mask in his face again, the tusks almost grazing his cheeks. Hatori gasped and then shoved past the man, hurrying into another alleyway. The Oni man watched him go for a moment before laughing and hurrying to the front of the crowd again.

Hatori ran until he heard the cheering of the crowd and the music both begin to fade. He looked about for a moment, seeing nothing move and not hearing any potential threats. He let out a tense breath and turned on corner and then another before coming to a dead end. He frowned and turned around to retrace his steps. This proved useless as about three turns in he came to yet another wall of bricks. He cursed under his breath and turned to head back again. These back streets and alleys were a virtual labyrinth, easy to get lost in and even easier if you weren't frequently walking the place, like a coach-escorted nobleman.

His fancy shoes tapped on the cobblestones and he pulled his coat around himself a little tighter to block out the cold. It wasn't summer anymore, but the whether had been clear and hot during the day still. With no cloud cover to hold in the heat, the nights dropped to freezing temperatures easily though. It was like the summer refused to surrender to fall this year. Hatori only took note of it now as he made him miserable on his way back. That is, if he could stop running into walls in this maze of back ways. He groaned as he came to another dead end and turned around.

As he came around the corner, a massive form filled his vision and he gaped in utter surprise at the tower of white and black fur. A wild panda…in the heart of the city? How was that even possible? There was a flash and Hatori stumbled back a little more. He attempted to cry out in alarm, but all that came out was an odd sort of wheezing gargle, right before he felt his shirt become heavy with a hot dampness. He looked down to see his entire front stained reach and then choked, reaching up to clutch his throat, his fingers dipping into the deep gash there. His mouth immediately overflowed with blood as he tried to speak again, the coppery taste sickening. The blood was hot, making steam rise from the wound. Every breath Hatori tried to take in pulled more blood into his lungs and every exhale made bloody air bubbles rise in his mouth and gush out with the current running from his neck.

He fell over onto the cobblestones, his blood running between the cracks and lines and spreading around him in a pool. He looked up at the panda, which stood on two legs easily, one paw gripping what looked to be a bloody kitchen knife. The panda lifted its hands up and removed its head, revealing that there was another one underneath…a human one. Two red eyes burned in the darkness, down at Hatori, seeing through him.

_Those eyes_! Hatori thought in horror. _Just like the Princesses_!

The Hatori's vision began to blur and his head rolled over to the side as his last breath bubbled out onto the cobblestones and he lay still. Everything was still for a moment before the figure in the panda costume knelt down beside Hatori's body and set something down on his chest. It was a little straw doll, used to ward evil spirits by shrine priests. The figure stood back up and smirked as a sound suddenly carried on the chilling wind from the castle, on the highest level of the capitol.

That night, as the crowds went to gather in the plaza, many would claim that they heard howling, like the howling of wild dogs in the night, coming from the Imperial Palace. A fitting thing really, considering that the first day of festival was called Coyote Midnight which commemorated the opening of the three days of harvest celebration. The ghostly howls would also serve to individualize this particular Coyote Midnight from the others in the past and future…as well as the things that occurred that night… SOL OF LUNA: A NEW AGE…Author's Comments…

Well, this has been a triumph for me to say the very least.

Once again, I apologize for my blatant neglect and hope that maybe I can manage to be a better author to my readership as this thing comes along.


	2. Chapter 01: A Life of Luxuries

**Sol of Luna: A New Age**

**Author:** Gakusangi

**Author's Notes and Acknowledgements:**  
This is a Death Note fan fiction. Many of the characters presented here are not mine, but the legal property of the original manga writer Tsugumi Ohba, and artist Takeshi Obata. Additional characters from are the legal properties of authors Nisio Isin and M.

**Chapter 01: A Life of Luxuries**

_Three months before Coyote Midnight…_

"Until we clear out some suitable accommodations," The palace attendant, a portly man who was balding with a monocle and long, thin mustache, said hastily, "You'll all be staying in the Prince's quarters. The bed is more than large enough for all four of you, and some extra blankets and nightwear will be brought up for you."

They were walking down a long corridor. The walls and doors were all made of either thick paper or very thin wood, white with red, flowery designs on their surface, and the floors, rather than being carpeted, were hardwood planks, undoubtedly polished to a shine, laid over with thick, but firm padding. Everyone had removed their footgear, as was traditional in these settings, to avoid staining the floor and forcing the palace staff to constantly run behind them with a bucket of water and washcloth. The children hadn't minded. The only thing they had objected to was the removal of their weapons, but argument did little in that instance, no matter how stubbornly Mello had protested. So they were unarmed, but not entirely defenseless. They were weapons in their own right, well trained and cunning. That's what it was to be guildsmen, which they all officially were.

That is, of course, except for the small, ivory haired boy that followed along side the blonde elder, or eldest rather, boy. Near wasn't entirely soft either, he had proven that during their travels together, but he wasn't a guildsman or even a cadet for that matter. He walked in silence, as usual, curling a lock of his bleach-white hair with one pale, slender finger. He was at least a full head shorter than everyone else, and yet it seemed the attention was drawn to him. Maybe it was his bizarre appearance, such a sharp contrast to any of the others or even his, at the moment, extravagant clothing. But whatever it was, he almost seemed to glow among them. Mello regarded the smaller boy with a sideways glance that either went unnoticed or was outright ignored. It was hard to tell when it came to the ever silent Near.

Matt and Linda were busy taking in their new surroundings. Never had any of them, Mello included, been brought up in such luxuriousness. The ceiling reached far above their heads, lamps hanging over them, their orange resin coverings shedding warm light over the hall. Mello hated the warm lighting. After such a long trip into the capital, and surviving solely on adrenaline, the lazy, orange glow made it difficult to keep his head up and clear. He wanted more than anything to sleep, but he wasn't willing to let his guard down at the moment. It was long still before dawn, and at least one of them had to keep up with Near's backward hours. Mello cursed silently within his mind. It was as though everything in this place had been set against them and worse yet…they were in enemy territory now.

At long last the attendant finally stopped just outside a pair of sliding doors, identical to all the others, and yet the man had stopped before it with practiced ease, having come here often enough to memorize which room was, in fact, Near's. He slid doors open and stood aside to allow them in. Mello stepped in before Near and stopped immediately, taken by what met his weary, but still sharp, blue eyes.

"Great, merciful God." Mello murmured in surprise.

Matt and Linda were beside the blonde boy in moments, both rendered speechless as they stepped across the threshold and into the Near's room. Spacious was not a word to describe it, for its expanse was almost overwhelming, and yet almost every inch of space was somehow occupied by some sort of toy of makes and kinds of any and every variety a young child could have dreamed of. It was like some kind of wonderland, dreams of every child sleeping beneath the smiling face of the moon, almost unsettling in its innocence. It was as though it were a feigned sort of joyousness that filled this place, empty objects of innocent play that were only there to veil the coldness of the place.

Near stepped past them, the attendant sliding the door closed behind him and leaving back down the hall. Linda noted the slightest of violet that rose in the ivory-haired boy's pale cheeks as he curled his hair. She had an eye for such small things and it was the only thing that allowed her to detect such a subtle change. Mello shook himself out of his shock, and followed the ghostly boy. It didn't take Matt and Linda long to come after them. But then they all paused a second time. Near had lead them to his bed, but the bed was not so much a bed as it was soft mat that lay in the center of the room, covered with a white sheet and a thick blanket, deep blue in color. That in itself was not so splendorous enough to cause pause, but what really shocked them into silence was the fact that the bed was large enough for at least twenty or so full grown individuals to nestle into comfortably. What luxury the royal family truly lived in, that they could sleep on furniture that was capable of resting a whole family and their immediate relatives.

Matt lifted his goggles from his eyes, and let them rest lightly upon his coppery colored hair, a grin spreading across his face. He dashed past everyone, leapt into the air, somersaulting and landing upon the bed. He began to jump on it, testing its springs, which allowed him to bounce high into the air. Mello and Linda both watched in silence. Matt's grin only broadened. He bounced one final time, and landed on his back, waves rippling through the mat as he landed. Once the sheets and blanket settled, the redhead gave a laugh.

"Oh, this is gonna be great!" Matt panted happily.

Mello came up beside the bed, frowning.

"Are you finished goofing around?" The blonde boy snapped.

"I'm just getting started." Matt said, sitting up and flashing a big smile to his best, but still very much annoyed friend.

Mello let out a frustrated sigh that was more like a growl, and stormed to one corner of the room, possibly the only one that wasn't filled by some kind of toy.

"This place is so big." Linda murmured, sitting down on the bed, and nearly sinking into it. "I get dizzy just looking around."

"Yeah!" Matt said happily, rolling over beside her and unzipping the front of his fur-lined vest.

There was a low rumble, and Matt's hand fell upon his growling stomach.

"Wow," Matt said in astonishment, only now coming to realize how hungry he was, "When's dinner?"

Near pointed in the opposite direction from where Mello now stood, his arms crossed over his black, quilted fencer's vest. There on the wall was a line of silk rope that led up a ways before vanishing into the wall. It was undoubtedly tied off to a bell for the servants and attendants that were at Near's beck and call. Matt sat silently blinking for a moment and then grinned again.

"I love this place!" He exclaimed, falling back on the bed.

Mello had reached his limit. He turned stormed out of his corner and made for the door.

"Where's the kitchen?" Mello demanded without looking at anyone.

Near came over and fell into step beside the blonde boy. They left together, leaving Matt and Linda to look on in confusion.

* * * *

Halle came walking into the warm colored office and gave a low bow to the Emperor, who was sitting behind his massive, dark wood desk looking over some paperwork. It seemed odd that such a inviting atmosphere would be the key dwelling of such a man as the Emperor, but she supposed it was just another aspect of him that alluded most others. He nodded to her and gesture to a seat before him. She sat down a waited patiently for him to address her before speaking. It was the polite thing to do, even if it was uncharacteristic for her. He was the Emperor, after all.

"I have an important task for you." The Emperor said, his voice and eyes lacking any semblance of life.

"What do you wish of me, my Emperor?" Halle asked.

"I want you to watch over my children." The Emperor answered flatly, not looking up from his papers.

Halle frowned. Watching the Emperor's offspring was exactly what she had been set to do in the first place.

"More specifically," The Emperor continued, "I want you to watch the three _new_ ones."

_He wants me to act as a spy_. Halle thought. _He doesn't trust them…do I_?

"Keep your eyes and ears open." The Emperor went on. "Talk to them. Befriend them even. Then report your findings to me."

Halle nodded and rose from her seat. She left silently, allowing the Emperor to get back to work in peace. But his thoughts would be interrupted by a voice. It was the voice of a creature that only he could hear. A voice within his mind.

_"I think they're starting to notice that you've been acting stranger lately."_ The voice belonged to Sidoh, the Emperor's Shinigami.

_But how will they act upon it_? The Emperor replied within his mind, where only the creature could hear. _They have nothing to raise against me, nothing to suspect_. _I am safe, so long as I remain calm, and patient_.

_"So, you're still going to kill the kid?" _Sidoh asked.

_The plan has not changed_. The Emperor thought. _Yagami's death is only a setback_.

_"If he's really dead, you mean." _Sidoh replied.

The Emperor did not comment on that, he only leaned back in his seat and fell back into his thoughts, so deep and dark that even Sidoh could not see them.

* * * *

Mello began opening cabinets, and drawers, seeking but not sharing what it was he sought. Near had a pretty good idea though. He came over and indicated one of the cabinets below the counter. Sure enough, Mello knelt down, throwing open the small door, and withdrew a handful of wrapped chocolates, his one addiction. He immediately unwrapped one, and popped it into his mouth, letting it melt slowly on his tongue. Thick, rich and sweet with only the slightest of bitter aftertaste, like coffee. Gourmet chocolate was unlike anything he had previously sampled. And he loved it…but at the same time he despised it, just another luxury of soft, cushy noble life. Near let him have his moment, remaining respectfully silent as he watched the blonde boy enjoy his treat. But Mello soon became aware of Near's dark eyes set upon him, and turned to meet them.

"What?" Mello snapped, pushing the chocolate into his cheek with his tongue in order to talk. "You can talk, but now you're giving me the silent treatment again?"

"You haven't said anything for me to respond to." Near said flatly, in his toneless and quiet way, his voice still a bit foreign to Mello's ears.

Mello snorted around his chocolate, switching it from one side of his mouth to the other as he did so.

"You're not happy." Near didn't ask a question, but made a statement.

Again, Mello's response was less verbal as he rolled his eyes and shook his head, turning away from Near and pocketing another handful of chocolate.

"I'm happy." Near said suddenly.

Mello turned around and frowned at Near, caught off-guard by his admittance. The white haired boy reached up and began to curl his hair, as he did his eyes broke away from the blonde boy's. It was something uncharacteristic and didn't fail to catch Mello's attention. All the same, he didn't allow his embittered disposition to waver.

"In all this luxury," Mello spat, "I wouldn't doubt it."

They stood in silence for a moment. Mello couldn't deny a certain sense of relief for being close Near and able to protect him. As he had sworn to do back at the crystal tower, but still Near seemed to be acting so strangely. It was a bit unnerving. The blonde supposed that there was a small chance that maybe Near felt just as relieved about having them all here with him. He also supposed that it should have made him feel better, but it only brought a measure of guilt, which he attempted to overcome by getting madder. Mello turned again and started to leave the kitchen. Near followed after him silently, his hand reaching up, but not curling his hair. This time it reached into the folds of his kosode, his fingers falling around the wolf fang that still hung around his neck by a black string. The one gift Mello had ever given him.

Mello failed to notice this as he and Near returned to their room. Mello took his spot back over in the corner, popping another chocolate into his mouth, looking a bit intense and somewhat brooding. Near sat silently at the edge of the bed, right next to Linda, who placed an arm gently about his shoulders. He was so small, and still so warm. Why did that always surprise her that he was warm? While Linda was taking a moment to try and comfort Near, if he really was in need of comforting, Mello's mind was drifting back to his first visit to the capital. He had walked the streets for a while as Roger was busy breaking the deal with Near's mother. His thoughts began to focus on Roger and his final sacrifice, which made the blonde boy's stomach knot, the chocolate becoming bitter in his mouth.

"Roger's service is going to be held soon." Mello said quietly.

"Yeah," Matt murmured, "They'll notify us when a date is set…I think."

"We _hope_." Linda sighed from her spot on the bed. "I probably won't get a chance to finish the mural before then."

"It can't be helped." Mello said, his eyes falling on the white haired boy beside him.

_We have a responsibility, Mello thought groggily, 'that' takes priority. Roger would agree…if he were here_.

"I could speak to arrange for us to go sooner in order for you to finish." Near said, again his response seemed sudden and cam as a surprise while all eyes turned to him.

"…We?" Mello frowned.

"I'll go too." Near nodded, as though it were already something agreed on. "I owe Roger that much."

Mello was silent a moment as Matt and Linda turned to him, not looking for him to make a decision, but just worried what his reaction might be. Mello only nodded slowly without a word.

* * * *

The sun began to rise over the palace outside, shedding warm light with the first birdsongs of morning, but the children only knew this because Near suddenly let out a small, exhausted yawn. It was a relief really, since all of them were worn out from recent events and almost non-stop travel. One of the palace servants had already brought them a change of clothes, and they went ahead and handed off what they had been wearing to be washed and mended. The pajamas that had been selected for them were silky, button-down and pure white in color. Near, with his hair, and pale skin was like a ghost now, but the clothes seemed oddly suitable for him.

"Who's taking first watch?" Linda asked after they were all finished dressing.

"I will." Mello replied immediately, his voice firm.

"No." Matt said, and his tone was oddly firmer than it normal as he addressed his friend. "I'll do it, you need some sleep."

Mello regarded the redhead with a severe look, but Matt laid a hand on his boy's shoulder, his expression lax.

"Let someone else be the masochist for a change." Matt said with a smile.

"Here." Linda said coming forward and handing the red haired boy a small dagger she had managed to smuggle in without detection.

"Thanks." Matt replied, tucking the weapon in the waistband of his pajama bottoms, and concealing the handle with his shirt.

He gave them a smile, pulling his goggles over his eyes, doing a good job of hiding how tired they looked, but everyone knew that was the only reason he had done it. Once the lights went out, the goggles would be off so he could see clearly. Matt wasn't foolish, at least not in these instances. Mello turned to Linda, his face serious, but tired.

"Near sleeps between us." Mello stated with authority in his tone. "And keep him close."

Linda nodded and thought she saw Near blushed a little again. The three slipped into the massive mat that was Near's bed, taking their spots. Matt turned down the lamps, and room was filled with darkness. There were no windows in Near's room, and for good reason, since sunlight was harmful to him. But the high ceiling, where – apparently – it had been special treated with some odd combination of chemical paints, so that as the lights dimmed, an image was revealed. The image of the night sky, filled with stars and large crescent moon, shined down upon them, shedding an odd, but warm bluish-green light over the room. Every one looked up in stunned silence for a moment.

"This place…" Mello remarked quietly, but that was as far as he got before he rolled onto his side, and closed his eyes.

Matt knew better than to hover around the bed. Even if it wouldn't make the occupants nervous, he would be spotted immediately. If someone was going to come for Near or any of them he wanted to be out of sight, while still keeping the bed _in_ sight. Linda had already taken the liberty of rearranging some of the pillows and blankets to give the impression that there were actually four people in the bed instead of three. Matt smiled to himself. That was Linda for you, always considering the details.

Matt found a good hiding place not far from the others. In the gloom, it would be hard to notice him, so long as he didn't move or make any noise. He could feel the cold blade of the dagger tucked in his waistband press against his thigh, causing the hairs on the back of his neck to stand on end. Linda had come through for them and now it was _his_ turn. The only problem was sitting still. Matt was worried that any length of time without movement could lull him to sleep, given his exhaustion. But moving around would give away his position and he might wander too far from the bed too far.

The redhead tried to set his mind to work, while his body remained stationary. If he could keep himself sharp, he could avoid falling asleep during his watch. He found that he could shift his weight silently from one foot to the other, which helped for a while, but then began to make his hips and calves sore, so he stopped before they started to lock up.

_The Sword alone can right your wrongs, all brave men now must own it. The Sword to freedom's cause belongs. All history past has shown it_.

The first thing that ran through Matt's mind was the hymn. It was engraved in his memory, in all of their memories. Repeated time and time again, ground into them mercilessly. They loved it, they hated it…they embraced it all the same. The hymn was the way of the warrior. But Matt quickly shook the words from his mind. It was too repetitive to be effective and too old for his liking. He reached back a little further into his mind. There were always songs and plenty of them. Something he had learned or even sung, though Matt wasn't much for singing since he didn't have the voice for it.

There was a sudden sound that disrupted Matt's train of thought and made his muscles tighten. It was a quiet whining of floorboards, followed by a light padding across the mats that covered them. Outside, someone was making their way stealthily down the hall. The steps were strained in an effort to keep them as silent as possible, slightly out of rhythm here and there as the feet attributed to them probed the next space on the floor, testing its give and trying to detect a hint of noise that might stir the slumbering occupants of the room. Matt almost grinned. Whoever was moving around just beyond the thin, papery walls of the room was pretty good at avoiding detection. If it weren't for his trained senses he might not have noticed at all.

The red-haired boy crept from his hiding spot and moved along the wall. It was so thin that he could practically feel the body heat of whoever was creeping on the other side. There was something else as well, a dim glow that was warmer than that in the room and encircled a section of the wall, moving along. It was odd for a potential killer attempting to be so undetectable to risk such a thing as a light source to give them away, but Matt didn't dwell on it long. The dagger came out slowly, the blade glinting in the low glow of the ceiling art as the redhead followed the light along the wall. Matt was more than prepared for a fight, his grip tightening on the dagger's handle. The person was almost to the door now.

The door slid slowly to the side, almost silent as it opened. Matt saw the warm flicker of lamplight bleed into the room from the hall. His muscles tightening inside his slender, but strong build ready to snap into action at any instant. Matt pushed the goggles up atop his head. He would have preferred to keep them down, but they would only limit his vision in the gloom. His eyes adjusted quickly and he spotted a head of blonde hair poking cautiously into the room. The person came inside, silent and graceful and a grin painted itself across the redhead's features.

"Can I help you?" Matt said suddenly.

The person, whom Matt immediately recognized the moment she entered the room, stumbled back in surprise, the lamp falling from her grip. Matt's movements were shockingly fast as he dropped the dagger, seized the lamp before it could meet the floor and caught the girl. However, Matt was ever so slightly off balance and the girl was, in fact, a little heavier than she at first seemed. Matt was pulled down with her, landing atop her as they hit the floor. Matt stared down into the blue eyes of Near's elder sister, blinking and blushing.

Misa stared into the emerald eyes of her _new_ younger sibling, the one with coppery hair and devilish grin. But he wasn't grinning at the moment. No, he was blushing, his cheeks bright red with embarrassment in their awkward position. With their eyes locked, the boy's name flashed in Misa's mind, as though it had always been there and there was no other name by which to call him. She had always thought that alias were a caution taken only among her household, but it seemed that others fell back on it for security. She couldn't imagine why, it all seemed so silly. But then again no-one had ever managed to hide their real name from Misa.

The boy quickly rose, bringing the lamp up with him. He was still blushing and seemed, maybe even, a little nervous, unsure of how she might react. His emerald eyes twinkled in the blue-green light, shadows sprayed across his face by the lamp held in his hand and Misa found herself overwhelmed with a sense of fondness. Back during the meeting with her father, the boy had seemed so calm and maybe even a little cheeky with the way he was always grinning, but right now, while he was all flustered, she couldn't help but notice how young he really was, that he was only a child, maybe just older than Near, if that. Just like the first time Misa had _really_ acknowledge that Near was her little brother, she came to that same realization now, with this boy. Misa smiled reassuringly and Matt found that it wasn't so difficult to collect himself as it had seemed just moments ago. His grin returned.

"Sorry," Matt apologized, "I didn't mean to startle you."

It was a lie of course, but it was what came out. Misa only continued to smile and rose back to her feet, her silky nightgown wrapping around her in little folds and her golden hair down and straight instead of tied up in her usual tails. He was only a little taller than she, but he had an air of someone much older for some reason, even though it had only been painfully apparent seconds ago that he was merely a boy. How odd these children were, but Misa shrugged it off before another thought suddenly occurred to her.

"Why isn't Mail in bed?" Misa asked, raising an eyebrow accusingly, her tone almost scolding.

"I could ask you the same." Matt countered playfully. "Isn't it well past your bedtime, Princess?"

Then his eyes went wide as her words milled over in his mind again.

"…What did you call me?" Matt asked with a worried frown that seemed entirely out of place for him.

Misa paused, her thoughts racing.

_That's right_, Misa thought frantically, _he uses a different name_! _Stupid Misa_!

She couldn't, for the life of her, remember what he had called himself earlier, during their presentation to her father. It wasn't safe to let her secret slip, so she had been told for years. She had to do something and fast. She racked her brain trying desperately to bring the name back to the fore of her mind, to no avail. But then another idea occurred to her, one that just might get her out of this jam.

"Miles, right?" Misa said. "Miles introduced himself as Miles?"

Matt blinked and tension in his shoulders did seem to ease slowly.

"Matt." Matt said flatly. "My name is Matt."

"Oh, Matt." Misa said with feigned embarrassment, even managing to make her cheeks flush a little. "Matt said his name was Matt."

"Yes, _Matt_ did." Matt replied, seeming a little confused by Misa's speech.

A silence passed between them, a bit awkward but not entirely uncomfortable.

"So…you're Near's big sister, huh?" Matt said, just the break the quiet that had settled.

"I'm _Matt's_ big sister too." Misa stated with another gentle smile.

"Oh, right." Matt chuckled with a nod.

"Misa came to check on Near." Misa admitted at last.

Matt looked at her, nodding slowly. He was certain that she was telling the truth, he could see innocence in her eyes and hear the honesty in her voice. He turned down the lamp and gestured for her to follow him. They were both soon where Matt had initially taken his post. He indicated the large bed and Misa peered over his shoulder. There laid Near, fast asleep, one of Linda's arms thrown protectively over him and Mello lying with his back to the other two, the blonde boy's eyes moving beneath their lids with fitful dreaming.

"I was taking first watch." Matt explained without prompting. "Keepin' an eye on things while they got some rest."

"That's very kind and…" Misa sought the appropriate words. "Thorough of Matt."

Matt decided that it was a compliment and offered her another smile.

"Would Matt like some company, while Matt keeps watch?" Misa asked.

"That would be nice." Matt replied.

_If anything, Matt thought, it'll help me stay awake_.

* * * *

Commander Rester entered the Emperor's office, giving a low, silent bow to the ivory-haired man and holding it before he was motioned to rise again. He stood at attention as the Emperor finished packing the documents he had been looking over into his large desk.

"I'm arranging for a dinner here, between my household and the Imperial Council." The Emperor announced blankly.

"We'll have security reviewed." Rester nodded.

"Your being here is a bit of something in that regard." The Emperor replied.

Rester raised an eyebrow.

"My Emperor?" Rester said in confusion.

"It's my children." The Emperor said. "_All_ of them. These new ones especially, they're the adventurer types. Even knowing that they are members of the Imperial household, they'll cast the air of caution and weight of responsibility aside."

Rester nodded in silent agreement. He would, even if he didn't agree, it was more of an acknowledgement.

"As much as it weighs heavily on my heart," The ivory-haired man touched his chest for emphasis since his tone had none, "I'm afraid we're going to have to clip the little ones' wings."

Another silent nod.

* * * *

Matt's eyes fluttered open, and his blood chilled as he realized he was lying on his side with a warm blanket draped over him. He had fallen asleep. The redhead bolted upright, the blanket falling from his slender shoulders and drifting around his middle where it rested in flowing wrinkles. Linda's head snapped around and her emerald eyes met Matt's with a measure of alarm. They softened quickly and a reassuring smile crossed her face. Her hair was hanging down, like Misa, not done up in the usual tails and she was still wearing the white pajamas that had been provided for them.

"Misa woke me up right after you drifted off." Linda explained. "She seems really…nice."

Matt nodded, the cold sweat of fear still drenching him and his nerves still shot and shaky. Misa had roused Linda to take up the watch while he slept…that meant something.

"We can trust her." Matt said quietly.

Linda nodded. It wasn't halfhearted approval. Matt had a knack for feeling people out, knowing what was going on deep down, where it counted. If he said that they could trust the Princess, then they could. It was that simple.

"You should get some more rest." Linda said gently.

Matt nodded and shuffled over to the bed, taking up Linda's old spot and even drawing the still slumbering Near close to him as she had. He fell into a light sleep almost immediately. Mello shifted his position, frowning a little with whatever dreams were troubling his sleep. A low, mournful sigh escaped him, leaving Linda to wonder. What could be plaguing the blonde boy so?

* * * *

Mello was moving cautiously down a narrow passage, with a low ceiling, torches dimly lighting the scene. His eyes darting left and right, even though there were only beige bricks there to meet him. He moved slowly, his pulse quick and his breath came in sharp, almost painful gasps. He came to large, iron door, which was slightly ajar. As he approached, he noticed that the lock had been compromised, damaged to allow entry without need of any key. Mello reached out with one trembling hand and pushed the door open, crossing the threshold as it screeched on its hinges.

At first what met his eyes caused him only to pause in confusion. There was a body lying in the center of the room, amid a pool deep-red blood. Then Mello's own blood went cold in his veins, the room lost its color and any sounds that were present seemed to deafen in his ears. He recognized the person lying in the center of the floor. Messy red hair of coppery quality that he could never forget, tattered jeans with knee-high, buckle boots and a tan vest with fur trim. Mello didn't want to believe it. He couldn't believe it. Matt lay motionless with his front stained a deep red. Mello ran forward, placing his hand on his best friend's chest wound, feeling the still warm blood run thickly over his fingers, making them sticky…but felt no trace of any heartbeat beneath. Matt's goggles were missing, his eyes closed and his cheeks wet with tears that had just recently been shed. Lying beside the redhead was a small, straw doll. But Mello paid it no mind as he leaned forward, bringing his face close to his best friend's, which was almost without color from the blood loss.

"Matt!" Mello cried, shaking the boy roughly. "Matt, wake up! Come on!"

He shook a few more times, harder each time, but still the red haired boy did not stir.

"Matt!" Mello called louder, his voice breaking an his eyes beginning to burn. "Matt! Wake up! Damn it, Matt! Open your eyes!"

Nothing…just more silent stillness. Mello closed his eyes tightly, hot tears pushing beneath the lids and streaming down his cheeks. No, not Matt. It couldn't be. There was no way. Matt had always been there, always so full of life and vitality. He would always be there. That was the promise. Damn it. That was what they had promised each other all those years ago. He couldn't be gone. He wasn't gone. This couldn't be real.

* * * *

Mello drew in a sharp breath and bolted upright, causing Matt to stir beside him in his sleep. Mello, drenched in a cold sweat, his eyes wide and his breath coming in panting gasps, looked to his redheaded companion, just to confirm his slumbering presence. Relief washed over him like warm, revitalizing water, easing out the tension in his quivering muscles and stilling his disquieted mind. Just then he heard a soft sound. The blond boy looked past his friend and into his arms, where lay curled a small form with a shock of white hair. Near had also stirred in Mello's sudden waking, but had quickly fallen back into a gentle, peaceful repose. His sleep was so sound that Mello was half tempted to reach over and bring his hand close to the pale boy's face, just to feel his breath against his palm and be sure that he was breathing at all. The urge left him once he was aware of eyes upon him.

Mello whirled around and spotted Linda in a dork corner of the room, not too far away. She was only now replacing the dagger in the waistband of her pajama bottoms, having drawn it quickly during Mello's startled awakening. She looked up at him, seeing the fearful traces of unease in his sweat-glistened face and offered a warm, soothing smile of reassurance. Mello took in his surroundings with an odd sense of profound confusion at first, but quickly remembered where he was. It was Near's room…in the Imperial Palace. They were the Emperor's newly adopted children.

Mello closed his burning eyes, unable to determine whether it was sweat irritating them or tears and wiped his brow with the sleeve of his silky, white pajama top. It had all been just a dream…a nightmare. The scene had played itself out before, but not with such intensity. At least, not since the moment he had happened upon it in the labyrinth on their way to the Emerald Sage Watari. He stole another quick glance at his best friend, just to be sure and then took a long, slow breath to steady himself and regain his composure. There was no need to lose his head if there was truly nothing to lose it over. It had been an illusion then, and a dream now. Nothing more.

"Is it time for my watch?" Mello asked quietly.

"Close enough, I suppose." Linda replied.

She came out of her spot, moving beside the bed as stealthy as a shadow. She pushed the grip of the dagger into Mello's palm and the blonde boy quickly tucked it away. Mello carefully moved over the other two occupants of the expansive bed and as he passed Linda, she spoke to him in a whisper.

"Misa was here earlier." Linda said, immediately snagging the blonde boy's attention. "Matt says we can trust her."

"Then we can." Mello replied without any hesitation, so confident was he in Matt's instincts.

Linda nodded in silent agreement, and slid beneath the covers. Mello walked silently over to the spot that the other two guild members had occupied, noting how good of a position it was. Linda passed gently into another calm slumber, much as the other two were in at the moment. Mello's mind, however, wandered back to the horrifying scene from the labyrinth. How real it had been. He could smell the torches burning, feel the cold breeze the passed as his opened the door and even the warm, damp, stickiness of Matt's blood beneath his fingertips. So real…But it wasn't. Mello shook the image from his head. He couldn't afford to get distracted. For every second they spent in the Emperor's house, they were in peril. Near was in peril and Mello had sworn an oath. They all had.

* * * *

It was odd to describe. Mello never saw the moon rise, but he could _feel_ it poke its ghostly face over the lip of the horizon and shed its silvery light over the Imperial palace. Linda and it was only natural since she had just fallen asleep not long ago, was the first to wake. She stretched, the line of her pajama top lifting to reveal her navel, and slim, but moderately toned abdominal region. For a moment, Mello was caught staring. Sensations of her soft skin beneath his fingertips still fresh in his mind from the last time they had been together, almost two years prior. Linda smiled at him, a bright and loving thing, like a sibling rather than a lover. A smile that could still ease his nerves and occasionally set his heart aflutter…but that was all done and over with now. They were friends and comrades, nothing more.

Matt was the next to rise and this didn't come as a surprise either, since Linda and he had that empathic bond that only two blood siblings could really share. He rubbed his eyes and yawned almost silently, and stretched his shoulders, all in a brilliant display of multitasking. Matt was one who could walk, talk and chew at the same time. He looked at his sister and smiled lazily, his hair messy from his sleep. It was in moments like these that he seemed so much younger than the other two, even though that wasn't entirely the case. It was all part of his charm, the thing that had made everyone fall in love with him. Matt had a _quality_ and even Linda couldn't help but smile back.

There was a small sound then and everyone watched as Near sat up beside the redhead, his eyes dark and unfocused and still half-lidded with sleep. His ivory hair was matted to one side from sleeping in the same position all day and his cheeks were rosy, probably from being too warm with someone constantly draped over him while he slept. If it had been anyone but Mello observing this, they might have found it quite adorable, but the blonde boy only snorted with mild amusement. Near placed one tiny, white fist against his eye and began to rub the sleep out of it, much as Matt had.

"Morning." Linda said, though it was the beginnings of early evening, it seem appropriate to her all the same.

The greeting had been to no one in particular, but Mello assumed that it was directed at Near. He felt something flare for a moment, but it was soon doused by his sudden confusion at what may have caused it in the first place. Surely he wasn't finding Linda's kindly gesture to their charge as some kind of _threat_? That would be ridiculous, even for him. Still, as Mello studied the still waking little boy sitting beside his best friend, he couldn't help but silently click his tongue at the bitter taste that had risen in his mouth. Anger was nothing productive at the moment, especially considering that it was directed at the one person he was meant to protect and so Mello decided to douse it with cold indifference, something that Near would have been very familiar with…at least in the Blonde boy's opinion.

"Morning." Matt chimed, stretching again.

Mello realized then that it had been a general expression and couldn't help but feel an odd sense of relief. However, this did nothing to change his decision towards how he would approach Near.

"So what's the plan?" Matt asked Mello.

Mello had thought hard during the night about this very thing. What were they going to do? The first step, he had decided, was to try and level the playing field a bit. In order to do that, they needed to know their surroundings and creatures in them.

"I want to cover as much ground as possible." Mello replied with a slow nod. "That means we're going to split up."

Matt and Linda both nodded. Near reached up slowly and began curling his hair. He no longer looked tired, his dark eyes focused on the blonde boy with an odd sort of intensity, even though they still seemed somehow dead. Mello looked to his fellow guildsmen, their roles having already been assigned in his mind.

"Linda," Mello said and she snapped to full attention, "You're going to wander around the palace. I want everything, every door, every passage, every stair…every crack in the wall."

Linda nodded. She was good at the little details and this task was more than in her range of abilities. Mello turned to Matt now.

"Matt," Mello began, "I want you to get _familiar_ with the staff. I want every name and the face that belongs to them."

"You got it." Matt replied, giving a small salute.

"Be discreet." Mello told both of them. "I don't want anyone to suspect that we're snooping around and sizing them up."

The two siblings nodded in unison, something that Nancy had always found amusingly adorable.

"Where're you gonna be?" Matt asked, though the answer was pretty obvious.

Mello snorted.

"I'm babysitting." Mello said bitterly, indicating the white haired boy beside the redhead.

* * * *

Matt approached, what at first had seemed to be, two guardsmen. The first was tall and powerful man with a blond heir, cut short and graying at the edges. His eyes were piercing and his posture was straight and rigid, like something chiseled out of stone. As Matt took in his uniform, he could see that, in fact, this person as a man of rank and high rank at that. At his side was a shorter fellow with a lean build and dark hair. He watched Matt with a sort of caution as came forward to speak with them. The redhead had already _interviewed_ at least thirty individuals thus far and he was just getting started. Among them, there had been nearly a dozen attendants, a handful of guards and three blushing, giggling housemaids. Whenever his mind was allowed to wander, he found that their smiling, pretty and slightly reddened faces would suddenly pop into his mind. But childish crushes were not to take priority…at least not until after the job was done.

Upon his approach, the two men gave a low, respectful bow, at which Matt blinked in surprise before he waved his hands passively.

"None of that, none of that!" Matt pleaded. "I'm not used to such treatment."

The two men looked at each other, seeming confused, but straightened up. Matt sighed, his cheeks with hot with embarrassment.

"Our apologies, highness." The large man rumbled.

"None of that either." Matt said firmly. "My name is Matt."

The smaller one blinked again and then nodded.

"Err…Matt." He said.

"To what occasion do such finely decelerated officers, such as yourselves wander the halls?" Matt asked, loving his rolling of polite and sophisticated jargon.

"…Uhh…guard duty." The smaller fellow replied.

"Guard duty?" Matt repeated with a frown. "Elites such as yourselves?"

"Bodyguards, sir." The large men said deeply. "We're charged with the task of ensuring his highness's…the safety of all the Emperor's children."

Matt blinked

"…You're our escort?" Matt frowned now.

"We were on our way back when you caught us." The little one replied.

"It's not safe for any of you to wander at this time without protection." The big man said, a firmness in his tone.

"My siblings and I aren't in need of an entourage, but thanks for effort." Matt sighed.

"I'm afraid it's beyond our decision…and yours." The large man replied.

Matt tilted his head and opened his mouth to say something before he was interrupted.

"We should take your highness back to his quarters." The big man said.

"When you put it like that, it sounds like a don't have a choice." Matt replied.

The large fellow took the redhead's arm firmly, just above the elbow where his nerves could be pinched and his limb disabled, not to mention that it would hurt like hell. Matt wasn't unfamiliar with holding techniques.

"You don't." The man said.

* * * *

Linda had been wandering around for some time, her bare feet patting lightly against the clean, padded floors of the Imperial palace. She was wearing her pajamas, since no other clothes had been provided for them. Not even Near, who undoubtedly had an extensive wardrobe, had been given anything new to wear and since Linda had no ribbons, strings or bands with which to tie her hair, it hung down, long and draping over her shoulders. It was silky and straight, very well-kept for an adventurer.

From what she had seen, there were only two entrances into and out of the palace, but Linda knew better than that. Undoubtedly there was at least one other passage, probably a well-guarded secret, which led out of the structure and more than likely, far out of the capital as well. That was why Mello had set her to this task. She could pick up on subtle things, such as a slight draft that might indicate that a wall wasn't entirely solid – things like that.

So Linda wandered, seeming aimless but in all honest very well calculated in both her movements and navigation. She listened to the padded floors carefully, for any signs of loose floorboards. Her eyes sought out anything that might sudden snare her attention, such as discoloration among the bricks in the wall. Her skin was aware of every draft and temperature change, for any could indicate the presence of a hidden passage.

She noted every door and corridor, as well as where they led and how easily they could be gotten to or defended from. These things must all be taken into account, for a guildsman's- a guildswoman's survival may very well depend on it at any moment. Linda new this lesson well. Roger and the others had been kind and nurturing, but they had also been _hard_ teachers. Not graduates of the guild like the children were now, but hardened through experience and adventure of their own. Even gentle as a lamb Nancy was a strong woman. In her old age she still could have throttled some of the most well trained soldiers. Linda and many of the other girls had looked up to her for this reason, she as their unofficial vanguard to lead them in a male dominated organization. It was a bit of an excite that the new head of the Guild was woman now and a very impressive outsider at that.

Linda suddenly paused as something tingled against her. It was cool, making the folds of her pajama top bush lightly against her. Was it a breeze maybe, down these seemingly vacant halls? Not likely. She eased her tensed muscles reminding herself that calmness was the best way to approach anything. L had been calm at the Crescent. His unwavering, cool exterior had been something a bit inspiring. That was to be expected. He was Legend. Linda closed her eyes and focused on the shifting of her garments before turning and moving over to one of the sidewalls. Her eyes still closed, she ran her hands over the smooth, ivory bricks slowly, feeling it all out. After a moment of this, she stopped, her eyes slowly opening and a grin crossing her fair features.

* * * *

Mello had been sitting on the edge of the bed and watching Near move around some toy soldiers for the better part of an hour now. The white haired boy was lying on his stomach, not exactly playing with the little tin figures, but setting them up in various, strategic formations around a large, stuffed bear with red ribbon tied around its neck. Mello was no stranger to these formations and what effect they would have if the bear were a 'real' threat. Mello wasn't sure why it surprised him that Near was familiar with these military maneuvers, since he was a high born and therefore privileged to a higher learning than most people his age. Still, there was something odd to see the seemingly gentle boy lay out a battle plan and a damned good one at that.

Mello fell back on the bed with a loud groan, seemingly bored out of his mind. He laced his fingers behind his head and stared up at the ceiling. The glowing stars were not present, hidden in the white with the dim, freshly lit lamps burning overhead. No clothes had been laid out for any of them, so Mello and Near were still dressed in their white pajamas. It wasn't uncomfortable, but it seemed lazy. Lounging was affordable only to the rich and powerful. The nobles. Naturally, Mello hated it, but for the moment there was nothing he could do about it.

"You have any books or anything?" Mello asked and after a moment of no response, he sat up again. "Hey!"

Near didn't even look up at Mello as he played, ignoring the blonde, it seemed.

"Anything would be better than watching you play with toys." Mello muttered. "Aren't you a little old for that?"

"I don't think so." Near replied calmly.

"Some day," Mello began an old thing Roger had once said to him, "It will be time to put up childish things."

It was eerily mechanical, the way Near suddenly stopped in his _playing_ and rose slowly to his feet. He patted off out of sight and Mello began to rise to go after him, wondering if maybe he had upset the younger boy. However, before Mello's feet had even touched the ground, Near returned with a stack of books in his slender arms. He set them on the bed beside Mello, and immediately- and wordlessly -went back to his tin soldiers on the floor. Mello picked up one of the books, not bothering to read its title as he popped it open.

"So long as you occupy your mind with something, you never have to worry about it losing its edge." Mello murmured, another thing Roger had told him, though he was certain someone had told it to Roger before.

"It happens to people all the time." Near stated flatly. "They're minds get slower and more easily confused. The brain, like a muscle, requires exercise in order to stay fit."

Mello blinked, a bit impressed but at the same time slightly embittered that Near had stolen a bit of his thunder. He started reading, just to have something to do. Another hour in, Mello was no less frustrated. He tossed the book aside, and didn't even bother to look at the others. He rose from the bed and stretched. In all the time that he had been reading, Near had been silently _playing_ with his toys. Mello had never seen anyone who could go over the same repetitive motions like the small, white-haired boy. He obviously didn't bore easily. Mello was more than a little relieved when the door slid open and Linda came quietly into the room. She seemed oddly _light_ about something. Mello came forward to hear her report.

"Did you see anything interesting?" Mello asked.

"You have no idea…where's Matt?" Linda frowned and looked around.

"Not back yet." Mello sighed.

"Well, I think I got something your going to appreciate." Linda smiled. "From the looks of it, no one's been using it for long time."

"What is it?" Mello blinked, his interests immensely piqued.

"I should show you, but we need someone to watch Near." Linde nodded at the ivory-haired boy still _playing on the floor_.

Mello sighed and shook his head. Just then, the door slipped back and Matt stepped in, looking oddly irritated, the door closing behind him. Both Mello and Linda looked upon the redhead with curious concern. What could have gotten under Matt's skin?

"…Report?" Mello finally spoke up after a brief silence.

"Not good…I hardly made a dent in the number of people here." Matt replied. "And it gets worse."

"What?" Linda tilted her head.

"We're prisoners here." Matt mumbled darkly.

**To Be Continued…**

**Author's Comments:**

Hopefully this came out soon enough.

I know, it's long and the first of (hopefully) two chapters that are actually made up of recycled chapters from the opening of The Four Winds.


	3. Chapter 02: Doubt

**Sol of Luna: A New Age**

**Author:** Gakusangi

**Author's Notes and Acknowledgements:**  
This is a Death Note fan fiction. Many of the characters presented here are not mine, but the legal property of the original manga writer Tsugumi Ohba, and artist Takeshi Obata. Additional characters from are the legal properties of authors Nisio Isin and M.

**Chapter 02: Doubt**

"What do you mean prisoners?" Mello burst, his stance going defensive, even though he wasn't in the presence of any potential threats.

"I was just drug back here by the big, blonde guy and his little cohort." Matt sighed, pointing his thumb over his shoulder and at the closed door behind him.

"Commander Rester and Stephen Gevanni." Near said tonelessly, his back to the others and apparently in need of no other descriptions than what Matt had offered.

Matt blinked at the small boy, still caught off-guard by Near's vocalizations before looking back up at Mello.

"They're the ones from the Crescent, I'm pretty sure of that." The redhead told the blonde boy. "The guys that grabbed Near and took off back to the Empire."

"And they're just perched outside?" Mello crossed his arms over his chest in that defiant way that his friends often recalled him taking when he was standing stubbornly against Nancy or Roger.

"We won't be able to move around with those guys boxing us in." Linda sighed, shaking her head.

"Not to mention, I still have a ton of people to get through before we have every name and face." Matt mumbled, taking a seat on the edge of the bed, an air of defeat about him that was very foreign to his companions.

"I think you should review the staff with me." Near said suddenly, his back still to the three Guild children.

"What, why?" Mello asked with a puzzled frown as he turned to Near.

"Think about it," Linda jumped in immediately, "He's been here with these people his whole life. If someone's trying to put something over on us, then he might know who it is."

"That's a good point." Matt added with nod.

"Fine." Mello relented, calmer than they would have expected. "Matt, go over the people you've met with Near as soon as possible."

The door to the room slid open, catching everyone's attention. One of the palace attendants stepped in with a stack of clothes in his arms. He stepped over to the bed, careful to avoid the toy soldiers Near was playing with and set the stack down beside Matt.

"Dinner will be ready in twenty minutes." The attendant announced. "We hadn't been sure of your measurements, so we tired to match them up as well as we could."

Matt reached over and took up a white, silky shirt from the stack of clothes, examining it carefully. The fabric even _felt_ expensive beneath his fingertips. Suddenly someone else entered. It was a woman, tall with long, golden hair, and ruby red lips. She wore a sword at her hip, and the uniform of an Imperial guard. Her posture and movements suggested that she was someone of authority, but Mello figured that it could have all been for show as well. These Imperial types tended to portray themselves as having a higher station than they actually did, especially where the fairer sex was concerned. Mello was, of course, generalizing.

The attendant gave the woman a short and silent bow before leaving the room, sliding the door closed behind him. The woman approached, stopping only briefly to avoid knocking over Near's tin soldiers. Linda recognized her immediately. She was one of the three soldiers that had pulled Near out of the Crescent and delivered him to the Emperor. But did that make her their enemy or could she be a potential ally? She decided to let Matt be the judge of that. It was more _his_ department anyway.

"Hello Halle." Near greeted casually, still not bothering to turn to the rest of the room.

"Hello Near." Halle returned pleasantly enough, but with the soldier's edge to it that somehow made it less than gentle…Mello was reminded of Roger in that instant, his tone was often the same.

_So, they're on a first name basis_? Mello wondered with mounting interest in this new arrival.

"I'm here to escort you all to the dining hall." Halle stated.

Mello jump up from the bed, nearly knocking over Near in the process and earning a _look_ from the smaller boy that was only as hard as Near could manage on his blank face.

"We don't need an escort." Mello informed firmly- his eyes and face both set in his stubborn way. "We can take care of ourselves."

"I don't doubt that." Halle admitted and Mello was surprised to see the honesty in her calm eyes and hear it ring in her voice. "I was at the Old Kingdom fort that day, but I have my orders. There's a bath in the next room and you'd all do well to take advantage of it. I'll be waiting for you out in the hall."

With that, she turned and left, leaving no more room for protest. Mello had to admit, he was beginning to like this woman, Halle. She seemed to have something that reminded him of the guildswomen he'd grown up with. She had spirit and presence and that warrior's resolve that came from years of hard training. When Mello looked back after her departure, he was somewhat surprised to see that Near was already up and making for the door, his socks whispering on the padded floor. Mello followed after him with the other two in tow. They crossed the hall passing silently by Halle, who stood leaned against the wall with her arms crossed over her chest, not watching them as they went. Matt frowned as he looked around the discovered that Rester and Gevanni were already gone. Had Halle called them off? Did she have the authority to do so?

It was steamy inside the next room, but in a pleasant sort of way, easing their still sleep-weary, muscles. Matt's goggles fogged up immediately and he was forced to uncover those shimmering, emerald eyes of his. Without a word, Near began to unbutton his pajama top. Initially surprised, Mello watched for a moment, but soon followed suit. There were no childish qualms about a girl being present or anything of the like. They had traveled together to long for anything so trivial to be an issue. They stripped and slid into the warm pool, an expansive collection of soaps and perfumes lain along the lip. A selection of exotic and pleasant fragrances to choose from.

Near took a breath, closed his eyes and submerged himself, earning a chuckled from Matt who floated nearby. Linda leaned in close to her brother and whispered in his ear.

"What'd you think?" Linda asked, not entirely sure if she was doing so to keep Mello or Near from hearing or if she was making sure any eaves-droppers, like Halle, could listen in.

"That I needed this almost as much as I need a cigarette." Matt replied with another amused snort.

"No, I mean about Halle." Linda specified, rolling her matching eyes.

"Oh," Matt thought for a moment, "It's still pretty early, but she didn't have the _feel_ of someone we should look out for."

"I like her." Mello said, not bothering to whisper like the others and causing Linda to look at him in surprise. "She's strong."

The two siblings regarded the blonde boy for a moment before nodding in agreement. Halle's strength could not be denied. It was only obvious the moment she strode into the room. Admirable, but did it make her a friend or a foe? It would certainly help them out in the long run to have someone other than Misa that they could trust on the _inside_. Misa was kind-hearted, but they were all certain that she was just as loyal to her father as she was to her younger brother. She wouldn't pose a threat, but probably wouldn't help if it put the Emperor in a bad position either.

Near broke the surface of the water, and came back up, his ivory hair now matted down. He looked very different with out his white hair curling out at the sides. They all finished washing in silence. Letting the water do it's work on their aching joints and muscles and clean their travel worn bodies.

(XXX)

Linda was the first one out, and Halle couldn't help but smile as she stepped into the hall. She was wearing a silky white dress with golden trim, the hem of her skirt stopping at her knees. She had done her hair up in her usual tails, which made her resemble a younger, amber haired Misa. She had even taken the liberty of applying a light layer of makeup, just enough to define her feminine features, rather than cover up any flaws- which were few to begin with -or mask her face, like some people were prone to do. Linda certainly didn't have an issue in overindulgence. She knew exactly the right amount to add in order to bring out her youthful beauty. Halle was starting to consider the idea that maybe Linda was no stranger to court life, an interesting and puzzling prospect…but then again, it was probably just her training.

Matt came out next, having decided to go more casual than formal. He was wearing a white tunic, with gold trim and a golden sash tied around his waist. The collar of his tunic was left open and he was wearing the same silky shirt that he had examined earlier beneath. He had rolled up and tied off his ivory colored pants so that they stopped not far bellow his knees, leaving his scraped and bruised shins exposed. He hadn't bothered to style or even comb his messy red hair and his goggles rested atop his head. Halle sighed and came forward, taking the goggles off of Matt's head and placing them in her pocket, earning her a frown from the redhead.

"You could have at least combed your hair." Halle said, running her fingers through the mess atop his head in an attempt to smooth it out.

It turned out to be a futile effort and Halle finally relented to let it lye as it was. Matt grinned up at her, his emerald eyes gleaming. Halle could almost feel her cheeks begin to warm. He was handsome in his scruffy way. She figured that if he got out among the nobles, she was likely to have her hands full batting away all the young girls that would undoubtedly flock to him. Like moths attracted to a flame. Halle's attention was brough back when Matt suddenly frowned and looked over her shoulder. He was squinting, as though he were trying to make something out from a great distance away.

"Mello?" Matt breathed in disbelief, his emerald eyes going wide.

Halle turned around, and her own eyes shot wide. Mello had donned the same white tunic and golden sash that Matt had, only he had taken the effort to completely button up and his leggings were not tied off. His hair had been washed and combed, his bangs pinned out of his bluer than blue eyes with a golden clip and the rest pulled back into a small tail behind his head. He wore his court garb very well. Mello stood straight and placed his hands behind his back, as Halle came forward to look him over. Matt came over to inspect him as well, his jaw hanging open.

"You look like a completely different person." The redhead said in awe.

"You look like you belong at court." Halle remarked with a gentle smile.

Mello frowned a little. Though Halle had meant it as a compliment, Mello found little he liked about it all the same. Near came out last, curling his ivory hair with one slender finger. He wasn't in the same outfit as the other boys. Since they had his measurements and a wide selection to choose from, he had donned a white top with very long sleeves and large buttons running down the middle of it. His bottoms were gray and loose fitting for comfort and there was a small circlet about his head- solid gold with a sapphire gem embedded in the center, which kept his bangs out of his doll-like eyes. Linda smiled brightly and came over, taking Near's shoulders and looking him over.

"You look even smaller in that outfit." Matt smirked. "Everything's so big on you."

"Big clothes for a big person." Mello mumbled, looking at Near. "…You look like your father."

Halle didn't understand that Mello wasn't making the remark as a compliment, so she thought nothing of it as she clapped her hands loudly to snatch their attention again and then beckoned them to follow her.

(XXX)

The dinning hall was spacious, but small in comparison to the grandness of the rest of the palace. The table was long enough to accommodate each person comfortably, with one empty seat, undoubtedly reserved for the Lady of the Empire, vacant at one end. Halle was standing sentry at the door, even though there were plenty of guards stationed around the place. Try as they might to keep themselves concealed, the Guild children easily took note of the armed men hiding away. Luckily, no one had bothered to search them when they had entered and Mello was a little more confident with the dagger nestled in the sleeve of his tunic.

They weren't exactly sure what they were eating, some kind of meat, either poultry or fish and soup that was blood red and sickly sweet to hardened pallets accustomed to the natural flavors that came with eating up whatever you managed while traveling. The Emperor was undoubtedly drinking wine, while the children had an unfermented berry drink, which was tart, but not unpleasantly so. After a moment of silence, in which the children simply pecked at their food, the Emperor finally rose, catching everyone's attention.

"Halle," The Emperor said, and everyone was surprised to hear him address her by her first name…though she didn't appear to be in the slightest, "I can't find it in me to force you to stand in the corner. Come, please. Join us for dinner."

He gestured to the empty seat at the opposite end of the table.

"I'm honored, my Emperor." Halle replied.

_Hyrua hasn't been gone a full three months_. Halle thought darkly as she made her way over to the table, knowing that the Emperor was far from making a _request_.

She rested her sword against the chair, and took her seat. Without command, a palace attendant came through a red curtain off to the side and placed a plate of food, a bowl of soup and an empty wine glass before Her. Before the servant had a chance to pour her drink, the Emperor himself, popped the top off the bottle and poured it for her, causing everyone to stare in astonishment.

Dinner resumed in uncomfortable silence. Matt and Linda were seated next to each other, with Misa sitting to Linda's left. Mello was next to Near, who sat nearest to his father. Matt was left sitting at the Emperor's other side. Mello was half tempted to switch seats with his best friend, but was far too uncomfortable with leaving Near defenseless, given that he was the only one of them armed at the moment and his father was so far his unsuccessful assassin. Finally the Emperor looked up from his plate, and addressed the table.

"I would wish to know more about you three." The Emperor stated lifelessly, though Mello could have sworn there was _something_ in his monotone. "After all, we've only just met. I understand that you three are fully graduated guildsmen. How did that come about at your age?"

"It happened while we were in service to the Prince." Mello replied, with an edge to his voice that was too obvious to overlook.

Above the table, Linda coughed quietly and took a sip of her drink. Beneath the table, she kicked Mello in the shin, causing him to wince slightly. He shot her a brief and severe glance, before returning to the Emperor, who was grinning with lifeless amusement…if you could even imagine what that would look like.

"No doubt your journey was perilous." The Emperor remarked. "I should like to hear of it."

"I thought the Prince had already told you of our journey." Mello replied, a bit more controlled this time to avoid any further _bellow the table_ unpleasantness.

"True, it would just be a recount of what I already know." The Emperor admitted with a nod. "So how about where you all come from? Before the Guild I mean."

The silence that ensued was almost a tangible presence in the room, like an uninvited guest. The Emperor looked at each of the children in turn, Matt and Linda failing to make eye contact, until finally his eyes rested on Mello.

"Mello?" The Emperor pressed. "That is what you call yourself, correct?"

"There was nothing before the Guild." Mello said flatly, his eyes locked with the Emperor's, holding his stare.

"Surely that's not the case." The Emperor replied, taking a sip of his wine. "Everyone comes from somewhere."

"I lived in a small town, which was burned to the ground during the Clan Wars." Mello said quickly, his tone blank and yet accusing. "My mother and father died in the fire and I was taken in by the Guild."

"There were Guild operatives present at the fire?" The Emperor asked in his dead way.

"Yes." Mello answered shortly.

_And among them was the greatest guildsman who ever lived_. The blonde boy thought with a measure admiration still present at the very thought of the Legend. _The very one that saved me from the fire_.

"That's awfully convenient." The Emperor offered in short almost bored response, though boredom would imply that his tone was livelier than it was.

It's funny how the fewest words could say so much, when the right ones were spoken. A sudden thought sent a chill down Mello's spine and opened an avenue of possibilities that he hadn't previously considered…he hadn't dared consider. Linda saw the look that passed over Mello's features and the sudden change in his coiled posture…and liked nothing about it. In fact, it frightened her immensely.

_Convenient_, it was never a word that Mello had considered before and yet it was like a millstone being dropped in his path, barring the way now without the ability to get around it. No, it was more like the stone were tied about his neck and pulling him down into icy waters. _Convenient_…it most certainly had been convenient. It had been like a Godsend…like destiny had suddenly taken him up…but _convenient_…_coincidental_…they were just gateway words to _calculated_ and _coordinated_.

"Misa thinks this is going to be exciting!" Misa suddenly burst, causing everyone to stare at her and disrupting Mello's darkening thoughts. "Misa's never had a little sister before."

She placed a chummy arm around Linda's shoulders and grinned broadly. Linda gave a nervously little laugh. She was obviously trying to lighten the mood. Misa wasn't as dull as people often thought she was.

"Well…I've never had a big sister either." Linda offered.

"I agree." Near said quietly, all eyes falling on him, for it had been the first words he'd spoken since they had arrived at dinner.

It was a fair enough deterrent. Just another example of the fewest words with the greatest results, ultimately. The meal was concluded and everyone was excused. Mello took the clip out of his hair, allowing his golden bangs to fall back into his eyes, hiding them and undid his ponytail. Though the dinner conversation had shifted to a more comfortable area, the blonde's mood had taken a turn for the worst. Now as he wandered down the halls, seeking refuge where he could find a moment to himself. All the while, the new possibilities of L's presence in his village played out in his mind. He couldn't believe them, wouldn't believe them.

_You're making a big deal out of nothing_. He scolded himself. _Sure, in seven years you never bothered to ask_ why, _but that doesn't mean anything_. _He was just_…there.

But Mello knew better than that. L was never _just_ anywhere. There was always a plan, a reason…a method to his madness. But he was too afraid to ask _why_…had always been. It could all mean something far more horrible than he was willing to accept. L was his savior, his idle and his mentor. Sure, officially L had never taken on an apprentice, but he had always taken a special interest in Mello. There was no way L would do anything to hurt him. The very idea was aggravatingly preposterous. L was good. L was righteousness. L was Justice. L was for Legend…that's what they all said. But Mello could not long ignore the dark feeling creeping in the corners of his heart and mind.

(XXX)

Commander Rester had set Stephen Gevanni to the task of shadowing the blonde boy. Even he thought that their assignment to the Emperor's adopted children was a bit unsettling in how little sense it made. Though considering the attack on the Prince that had led to his fleeing the Capital was definitely cause for some extra security measures. Still, this cloak and dagger maneuvering left both men feeling as though there was more to this than just the safety of the royal family. It felt more like they were spying, leaving a dirty feeling hanging on them like a layer of dirt. Gevanni was no stranger to such things, his specialty was infiltration, but even the fact that this seemed so familiar and natural to him it did little to soothe unease. All the same, what could he do? Disobey his superior and deny the Emperor's wishes?

He watched from a safe distance as Mello unclipped his golden hair and let his bangs fall. Something was noticeably weighing heavily on the boy and Gevanni had to wonder what it could possibly be. From what he had initially observed of Mello, the boy possessed an unshakable determination and though his demeanor was far from calm, he didn't seem like the type to gloom about as he was now. There was a good possibility that it was just something he had thrown up to keep others distracted from what he was really thinking and doing, but there was somehow a genuineness to his mood that made the Emperor's agent suspect otherwise.

_I'm not here to dissect him_. Gevanni reminded himself. _I'm to ensure his safety in secret…his first and last line of defense_. _Then report to the Emperor_.

Mello rounded the corner ahead, taking a door to a long stair, which could take him up, higher into the compound or down towards the base. Gevanni crept along the wall, making sure that he and Mello were the only two in the vicinity before slipping in after the blonde boy.

_Enough of this dwelling, I have a job to do_. Gevanni scolded himself as he pushed open the door silently and stepped in.

He stopped and blinked at the empty stair before him before looking over the edge, to the steps below. There was no sign of Mello, not even the sounds of his footsteps. Gevanni looked up to be sure there weren't more steps going up before he started down the staircase stealthily, but swiftly. As soon as he was starting to turn on the first landing, A hand reached up over the rail and Mello pulled himself up onto the flights of steps he had been hiding beneath, pressed against the wall and out of sight.

After hauling himself up, he quickly and almost silently hurried to the door and slipped out, back into the hall. He smirked a little. Had they really thought they could just stick someone on him like that without his notice? He fought back a chuckle as he made down the corridor, heading back towards Near's room. He didn't make it far before a small, ivory-white form came around the corner, making Mello stop dead in his tracks. He watched as Near silently approached, a frown slowly crossing his brow and irritation heating in his chest.

"Did you come here just to check up on me?" Mello asked bitterly, his hands falling on his slightly cocked hips.

"No." Near answered flatly. "You're perfectly capable of taking care of yourself."

_I can't tell if he's being sarcastic or not_. Mello thought in frustration.

"You're right." Mello barked in irritation. "So why 'are' you here?"

"Someone from the Guild just arrived at the palace gates." Near informed, snagging Mello's full attention. "Apparently he's come to deliver your personal effects."

Without a word, Mello rushed out off, nearly barreling into Halle who was standing right around the corner having escorted Near along the way. Mello dashed down corridor after corridor, taking almost every turn and bend he came across. He still wasn't entirely familiar with the layout of the palace and navigating through its expanse was proving to be a difficult task. All the while, his mind was racing.

_Is it L or is he with whoever it is_? Mello was hopeful.

But if L had arrived, would he be able to keep himself from asking _that_ question…the horrible question, which now circled around in his head, a sliver of doubt that the Emperor had managed to jackknife into his mind? Mello wasn't sure and didn't care. If it was L and he did ask, then it would just have to play out however it will. Still, he couldn't deny that cold feeling in his heart. He shook his head to clear it. They had a saying in the Outlands, one that Mello was only vaguely familiar with. What tongue it had been spoken in then had been long forgotten, but roughly its translation would come out as something like, "what will be, _will_ be". Though this wasn't his exact line of thinking, it was close enough to be relevant.

Eventually he found himself in the expansive entrance hall, guards at full attention, lining the walls. He ignored them and moved on. Just as he was about to descend the steps that lead to the great doors, a small entourage of guardsmen came up to meet him. At their center was person that Mello could recognize any day.

"Ukita!" Mello burst happily, a great weight lifting from him as he ran forward and shoved his way through the guards that were escorting the young man.

Ukita smiled as Mello came crashing through and took him by the arms in a gesture of open affection that was still not as childish or embarrassing as an outright embrace, but still carried the same kind of feeling. The young man nodded at the blonde boy and looked him over in his regal garb.

"Look at you." Ukita hummed. "The little prince."

"What?" Mello frowned before looking down at himself and feeling something close the embarrassment flare up in his face.

Matt was apparently too overwhelmed with emotion or simply didn't care who was present, as he did not attempt to cloak his feelings in the slightest. He burst through the crowd, shoved past Mello and wrapped his arms about Ukita's middle in a firm, brotherly hold.

"Aw, isn't that adorable." Linda cooed, coming beside Mello and smiling, seeming just as light as the blonde boy felt at the moment.

Matt blushed a little, but didn't break the embrace. Ukita smiled down at the red haired boy and patted the top of his head.

"Miss me?" Ukita asked.

It wasn't long before the three Guild children were helping unload a small cart with all of their possessions careful packed inside. Attendants helped move the items into the palace, where they would undoubtedly be subjected everything to close inspection, just to be sure that they were _safe_. A few of the more personal items were quickly stashed away for safekeeping. One such item was a small leather pouch that smelled heavily of fresh cut tobacco, which Matt managed to slip up the sleeve of his tunic while no one was watching. Mello was close to Ukita and the man shared some words with him while they worked. Mello himself was just anxious to hear of the Guild and what was happening in their absence.

"Aizawa came in the other day, and reported that the Daimyo forces were severely weakened after the fight we gave them." Ukita said, and pride was evident in his voice.

Mello couldn't help but grin. It wasn't only the good news either. With the presence of a familiar face and feel of his longtime home at his fingertips as he picked through his personal effects, that sense of misplacement had been lifted from his shoulders. Ukita continued on about a few odd end things, people they knew and such. It was a relief to the blonde boy's troubled mind and he soon found that all thoughts of L and whatever he might or might _not_ have done were pushed aside…at least for the time being.

"Roger's service is two days from now." Ukita said, his tone gentle but gloomy.

Mello looked up at him from the box he had been about to lift. There was silence between them, one in which an entire conversation was held without one word being spoken, and slowly Mello began to nod.

"…Should I speak with the Emperor and inform him of it?" Ukita asked.

"Near has to come too." Mello said suddenly and now Ukita looked surprised. "He owes Roger due respect. After all, he did help keep him alive."  
Ukita nodded slowly in understanding.

Mello understood that if Near couldn't come with them, _he_ would have to stay behind and watch over the white haired boy. Matt and Linda needed their closure, and he was better suited to guard the younger boy anyway.

"Hey," Matt suddenly appeared beside the two of them, "What's keepin' ya? We're all waiting out there."

Mello lift the box, and shoved it roughly into Matt's torso. As Mello released his hold on it, Matt quickly brought up his arms, catching it before it could fall. He let out a breath, and shot the blonde boy a _look_.

"Roger's service is two days from today." Mello informed the redhead quietly.

"They set a date?" Matt asked in a hush tone, though it really wasn't a question.

"I'll be bringing it up to the Emperor." Ukita confirmed.

"We're going home?" Matt burst, a little louder than Mello would have liked.

"Just for the service." Mello said firmly. "We need to protect Near and that means being with him at all times. We're all now in the Emperor's custody, so there's no going back for good."

Matt sighed heavily. He understood, had understood the moment it had been agreed on, but still…he liked the idea of falling back into their normal routine. This life of luxury and masked hostility wasn't his scene. He longed for friendlier, more familiar surroundings…and a little bit of excitement for God's sake! Constantly looking over his shoulder to see who was about to put the knife in it was not his idea of fun.

"We have to try and convince the Emperor to let Near come along." Mello told his best friend.

"Oh, that'll go over well." Matt sighed. "Hey, we know you just got your kid back, but we'd like to drag him along with us to pay our respects, and hope that you'll trust us enough to bring him back. How could he say no?"

"Hyuk - hyuk - hyuk!" Mello shot back bitterly, and Ukita was reminded of Nancy back at the guild - though he chose to keep this to himself.

"What's taking so long in there?" Linda called from somewhere outside.

"At least we'll be able to wear 'our' clothes." Mello remarked as he resumed unpacking.

Mello couldn't seem to shake the feeling of something very big on the horizon. But he had to stay focused. The perils could wait for them until after they had a chance to say goodbye, if they even got that chance to begin with. He looked over at his best friend again before looking back out of the back of the wagon at the palace. They were bound together, by duty, by friendship and by fate. So long as they were together, they could overcome an obstacle that presented itself. There was comfort in that thought…though it would only be short lived.

(XXX)

"Hmm…" The Emperor hummed and thought for a moment. "It's considerable, but I suppose I can't deny them this rite. I'll allow them to leave for the duration of the service."

The Emperor's eyes flashed for an instant, and he leaned back in his seat. After a moment of painfully silent contemplation, a sly smile crossed his face.

"Very well," He murmured coldly, "But no alone. The boy was good enough to catch Gevanni tailing him. I'll need something a little better suited for their talents."

_You have something in mind_? Sidoh, the Emperor's Shinigami, asked curiously.

"Yes." The Emperor was grinning now in that lifeless way again. "Summon Gelus."

**To Be Continued…**


End file.
